newcastle ramblers bushwalking club newsletter - Confederation of ...

NEWCASTLE
RAMBLERS
BUSHWALKING CLUB
NEWSLETTER
JUNE 2010
Yengo Traverse Backpack April 2010
Mailles Ridge April 2010
Overnight Backpack to
Teddy’s Hut & the February 2010
Chimneys
Wingen Maid and Rocky Downfall
Mountain April/May 2010
Yengo Traverse Backpack
2nd – 8th April 2010
Leader: Peter Rye
Drop Off walkers: David Morrison, Ken Thompson &
Pauline Garry
7 Day walkers: Robyn Rye, Royce Hirning, Lois Simpson,
Stephen Ryan, Tony Winton & Doug Curry
Pick up Crew: Carol Bastian, John Sharples & Bob Clifton
The Ascent of Mt Gower April/May 2010
Walls of Jerusalem February 2010
RAMBLERS PHOTO COMPETITION
RESULTS for 2009
Category: Hand of Man
1. Lost Cause - Robyn Rye
2. Mowing Day - Peter Rye
3. Seat with a View - Ingrid Waeger
Category: Landscape
1. Lake Nuga Nuga - Carol Bastian
2. Green - Karl Cwach
3. Moonlight on Ghosties - Robyn Rye
Category: Nature
1. Storm Clouds at Dusk - Robyn Rye
2. Magic - Bruce Derkenne
3. Butterfly on Flowers - Glenn Bird
Category: Spirit of Bushwalking
1. On Top of Ol’ Lockleys - Bruce Derkenne
2. Cold Morning Campfire - Robyn Rye
3. Pantoney’s Crown - Greg Powell
Gary Scully Memorial Trophy for Best Overall
Photo: Storm Clouds at Dusk - Robyn Rye
Photos can be viewed here:
http://www.bushwalking.org.au/newcastleramblers
/PhotoComp2009/PhotoCompWinners2009.html
Contributions to Editor:
Caroline Hargreaves. Email: ctaibs@gmail.com
The drop off walkers and the 7-day walkers
Day I We started at the locked gate on Nowlands Track at
10am 0n Friday 2nd and walked into Rileys paddock for lunch.
We were surprised to find the creek almost dry, as there was
quite a lot of water in it when we were there last. After lunch we
followed the Tumbledown track south to the junction of Nowlands
and Tumbledown creeks. We found a good campsite
there after a climb down from the road.
Day 2 Today was a hot and hard day as we headed
towards Mount Calore. We were hoping to have reached
the MacDonald River today, but it soon became obvious that
we were not going to get that far. Tony started to suffer from
cramps and the rest of us were getting very tired, so we were
very relieved when Peter decided to cut the day short at 2pm
camp in Yengo Creek.
The creek is quite hard to access through the cliff lines but
when we reached it there was a good sandy clear creek bed.
It was not flowing but we managed to find good pools of water.
Some explored the creek upstream for a km in the afternoon
– the sandy bed made for good walking.
PAGE

Day 3 The 3 weekend walkers decided to leave us this
morning taking Tony with them. They were to follow Yengo
creek upstream and access the Yengo / Calore road which
leads back to the homestead.
The remaining 6 reached Mount Calore at 12.30pm and
after lunch at the dam followed a side creek into Calore
creek then to the MacDonald. This part of the trip was
extremely hard going and it took us all afternoon to reach
the river arriving around 4pm.
We were very weary but happy to see that the river had a
reasonable flow of water in it – 2-3 inches – just enough to
allow for good walking. Camp was set up on a bend 1 ½ k
south of the Calore Creek junction.
Day 4 Today was our first full day in the MacDonald and
we left camp at 8.30am. We had 10-12 km to walk on firm
sand so it was easy going through beautiful scenery and we
reached our campsite on the Big Bend between 2.30 and
3pm.
Signs of civilization
We camped where Peter had hidden our food and water
drop. It was a very comfortable evening around the campfire
with red wine and good tinned food – which was tastier than
the dried food we had been eating all week. We had custard,
peaches rice and chips – just to name some of the ‘goodies’.
For good measure we also ate Tony’s stash – we didn’t think
he would mind
Day 7 Today was our last day and we left camp at 7.45am
carrying the two water containers and the food barrel with
us. We reached the Boree track by 9am and headed south
stopping at Frying Pan rock for morning tea. Soon after we
ran into Bob Clifton and John Sharples who were walking up
from Audrey’s to meet us. The locked gate was reached by
12.30 and 30 minutes later we were at Audrey’s studio.
Carol, Bob and John put together a lovely lunch with hot cups
of tea, which we had while sitting on the studio’s verandah.
The beautiful MacDonald River
Day 5 This was to be our last day walking in the
MacDonald and there was a reluctance to hurry away from
our campsite. So with Lois leading the way we did some cave
exploring before leaving our camp at 9.30am.
We had an easy 6km to travel today once again through
beautiful country. We reached the junction of the Yengo and
the MacDonald before lunch and were surprised to find the
Yengo so dry that 4WDs had left wheel tracks on the creek
bed. Last time we had been there the water was flowing
quite well in both the Yengo and the MacDonald.
We set up camp on the big sandbank and then some went
exploring up the Yengo for some distance. That evening just
before dark it started to rain and continued to rain for most of
the night. So we all sheltered under our large fly to eat and
spend some time together.
Day 6 We departed the Macdonald at 7.30am in the rain
and started our wet and slippery climb up to the top of the
Bala range. The rain stopped after we reached the top and
further on the road, but it stayed cloudy all day. The road is
good walking and our clothes had dried off by the end of the
day.
PAGE
At the Boree Track
Many thanks to all the support
crew at both ends.
***********************

Leader: Peter Rye
Mailles Ridge
24-26 April 2010
Walkers: Robyn Rye, Stephen Ryan, Kim Manhood,
Sylvia Tait, Josh Green, Michelle Mackie &
Mel Marriott
We started from Sams Way at Mountain Lagoon at
11am following a fire trail, which led to the start of the
Mailles ridge foot track. The going was a bit slow as the
track was sometimes a little hard to find and we often
wandered onto old tracks and had to climb back to the
top of the ridge to find the right way. It was getting quite
late by the time we started the very steep decent from
Meroo spot height.
We reached the shelter shed at Meroo Plantation just
as darkness was falling (after a slow and tiring climb
down). Heavy rain started just as we were putting up our
tents. There were other campers in the shed and luckily
they had the fire going and did not mind us putting
our billies on it for a warming cuppa. The rain continued
all night and into the following morning.
*******************
Wingen Maid and
Rocky Downfall Mountain
30 April to 2 May 2010
All up fifteen of us travelled to the ‘Washpools’ camping
location of Towarri National Park to meet up at various
times – some at Scone for morning tea and a walk to
Burning Mountain for an early lunch.
Burning Mountain is one of those places mostly bypassed
on a driving trip, but really worth the effort of
1.5 hours return walking to see an interesting
phenomena – the changed landscape resulting from a
burning coal seam many metres below ground, which
has been advancing 1metre per annum across the hillside
for thousands of years.
The other walkers had come in via the private property
access road. Peter led a short walk the following morning
to check out this route (we had been told it was no
longer possible to access Meroo Plantation this way).
NP have put a track around one of the properties that
objected to walkers The other property owners he met
are quite friendly.
In the afternoon Peter led a short walk up the Colo,
which had a good flow of water and some quicksand.
We broke camp early the next morning so that we could
climb the cliff before the day heated up and were back
at the cars by 1.30pm after finding the track much easier
to follow if we stayed on the ridgeline.
The fire affected landscape at
Burning Mountain
PAGE

On setting up camp at the beautiful ‘Washpools’ we set
off up the eastern ridge behind the campsite to get a
feel for the area and views of the Wingen Maid which
we planned to climb the next day. The steep sandstone
cliff lines of this prominent ridgeline in the distance were
impressive. The rest of the group arrived after our return
to camp and we settled in for a quite night around
the camp fire.
We retraced our route, with some delays in locating
the pass through the cliff line, in much the same time
frame.
This weekend was also the first night of the extended
trips of Kevin and Marise, and Lynne and Lindsay who
separately were off to points north in the Northern Territory
and Queensland.
On Saturday we drove from our campsite on Middlebrook
to the next valley where we parked our vehicles
next to Dry Creek at the base of the prominent and most
likely looking ridge leading to the top of the ‘Maid’. We
had checked in the day before with the property owner
and had received plenty of directions to reach the top
as well as some very interesting information of the geology
and Aboriginal history of the area.
We were able to follow a faint track which kept to the
steep narrow ridge line through ‘Tiger Pear’ weed on
the lower levels before it ascended through open forest
and later rain forest in the shelter of the cliff lines.
As we approached the cliff lines the track swung to the
left (north) for several hundred metres before winding
through a number of clefts and passes to the top – too
easy.
Top view from Wingen Maid north west along
Dry Creek towards Mt Tinaroo
Back in camp we enjoyed a beautiful evening and another
campfire. We were joined by two young French
girls traveling in Australia and later Neil showed us his
tattoo.
The next day (Sunday) we drove a short distance further
up Middlebrook to the locked gate near a quarry
and commenced our walk through farm land to the end
of the track in undisturbed rainforest. We passed an
abandoned farmhouse and several other reminders of
an earlier farming land use.
After morning tea near the end of the track we climbed
350m to the east on the Skyline Fire Trail to a saddle.
At this point we had a choice of either walking (climbing)
north up onto the Liverpool Range plateau some
250 metres higher or walking south along the ridge to
the prominent basalt outcrop named ‘Rocky Downfall
Mountain’. We chose the latter and were delighted with
the beautiful alpine vegetation along the way and the
superb views in all directions.
A rest stop along the Wingen Maid ridgeline
We found ourselves in open forest grassland and headed
east to the top of a prominent knoll for great views
in all directions. The route to the lookout of the ‘Maid’
& a trig station lay to the south along a narrow rocky
ridgeline with patches of thick scrub here and there. We
stuck to the eastern side of the ridge and reached the
trig and our lunch spot soon after. All up the climb of
350m took about 2.5 hours over a distance of 3.5km.
The Wingen Maid in the distance, and to the south east,
looked small and we were certainly a lot higher than
we had been the day before. There was a slight cool
breeze blowing as we stopped for lunch – but what a
superb location!
We retraced our route and were back at the cars by
3.30pm, giving us plenty of time to return to camp, pack
dry tents, and head for home.
Bob Clifton.
*******************
PAGE

Overnight Backpack to
Teddy’s Hut & the Chimneys
24/25 February 2010
Whilst staying in Perisher for the week at the Shortland
Ski Lodge, four of the Rambler’s group; Bob, Pauline,
Malcolm, and David donned packs to walk to Teddy’s
Hut, which has been beautifully restored since Bob’s
last visit over six years ago.
The hut, protected by nearby peaks Mt Leo, Brindle Hill,
and Mt Terrible is located to the west of Smith Saddle at
the head of Boggy Plain and the Thredbo River.
Teddy’s Hut was constructed in 1948 as part of the
high country grazing activities and after the mountain
leases were resumed fell into almost complete ruin. In
2005 the KHA and National Parks rebuilt the walls and
chimney to restore the hut to something of its former
beauty.
The hut logbook records a visit by Peter and Robyn in
2007 during a similar overnight walk. We had left the
Lodge by 8.00am and in beautiful weather (still, clear,
and sunny) were walking from Dead Horse Gap about
an hour later along a track on the southern side of the
infant Thredbo River. Our morning tea spot overlooked
Boggy Plain which is a wide open frost plain surrounded
by tree-covered hills, many of which have been affected
by the fires of 2003.
It is great to see the extent of re-growth occurring since
the fires and the forested hills are well on the way to
regaining their former beauty. On the positive side walking
off track is now much easier with little undergrowth
to impede progress.
We missed the location where the track crosses the
river and ended up following bits and pieces of horse
pads through swampy sections of the plain. Eventually
we located a better track and climbed towards the
Chimneys, a prominent rocky outcrop, resting for lunch
in the saddle to the southwest.
Our original plan was to climb up to the Chimneys, and
follow the ridgeline to Smith Saddle. Rather than carry
packs to the Chimneys we changed plans and climbed
without packs (about 1.5 hours of return walking through
fairly open snow gum forest).
The views of course from the Chimneys were worth the
effort extending in all directions from the Main Range
to the Pilot.
We returned to Boggy Plain and continued walking on
the southern side of the River, sometimes on a good
track and sometime on horse pads, which seemed to
disappear in boggy sections.
The walking was slow and tiring, and we were pleased
to see Smith Saddle up in front. As we approached we
startled a dozen magnificent brumbies grazing on the
grassy flats.
PAGE
The Chimneys from our lunch spot
in a saddle below
We reached Teddy’s Hut about 5.00pm and soon had
our tents erected & a nice little campfire lit to get some
soup on. It was a lovely evening around the fire and as
it cooled down stars filled a clear sky. We slept well.
Our campsite near Teddy’s Hut
The next morning we walked for an hour around the
location enjoying its beauty and contemplated possible
walks to Mt Leo, Paddy’s Rush, and Brindle Hill. A two
night stay next time would allow this, and it would also
be possible to return to Dead Horse Gap via this western
ridgeline.
We returned the way we had come, down Boggy Plain
and reached Dead Horse Gap about 3.30pm, in time
to meet the other Ramblers who had completed walks
above Crackenback. A coffee at the Village Bakery was
followed by a refreshing swim at the Thredbo Swimming
Centre. That evening we had dinner together at
the local Italian Restaurant in Jindabyne.
Overall a great couple of days to intersperse with the
day walks completed during the week.
Bob Clifton
*******************

The Ascent of Mt Gower:
One section at a time
Recently a party of 26 Ramblers had a great holiday on
beautiful Lord Howe Island. One of the many attractions of
this sub-tropical resort is the foreboding Mt Gower. At 875m
above sea level, this is a sizable peak (technically a basalt
remnant of a volcanic caldera) and is talked about as arguably
one of the best climbs on the east coast. As group sizes
were limited, we had planned for two groups to climb the
mountain, the more experienced ones on Monday and the
others on Wednesday.
Now I don’t have any street cred as a mountain climber and I
had a few misgivings firstly, whether I really wanted to climb
it and secondly, whether I was up to the task. So I did the
sensible thing: I asked around about what was involved and
I prevaricated on coming to a decision.
Hubby thought he was being very helpful, pointing out that
the walk was only 8.5kms, and that while it was indeed 875m
high, we had done many walks that had lots of uphills and
down dales, which when added up were close to this, and
that on the return journey it was in fact all downhill ! This all
sounded very logical, but he hadn’t done the walk and did not
really know what was entailed.
Sure, but I was worried about the height thing — I am not the
one in our house who climbs the extension ladder and paints
the bargeboards and guttering!
We went to see the tour lady, who said the guide (her son,
Dean) would talk me through any sections that I was not comfortable
with. So we paid our money and I was committed!
Wednesday morning was overcast, but sunny with only a distant
threat of rain. At 6.45am we were whisked off by the Island
shuttle bus to the trail head and met our muscular, very
fit and unassuming guide, Dean. We signed the form taking
full responsibility for our actions and collected our helmets.
The initial stage of the walk was easy and at the end of the
coastal strip Dean regrouped and told us about the forests
that we’d be passing through. Then on the first steep section
with thick ropes to aid the climb my heart began to race.
At the top, we had a pause and my heart beat slowed — I
was grateful for the stop. Dean gave another talk about the
Island’s geology. I didn’t really listen I just ate a chocolate bar
— I never eat chocolate but I thought ‘if ever I needed this, it
is now’. Helmets on and we entered the breathtaking Lower
Road, a half kilometre long narrow ledge with a clear and
unimpeded 150m drop to the sea, but no worries there was a
safety rope to cling to.
So I kept listening in on briefings. The climb could only be
done with an experienced, paid guide. Walkers were given
safety helmets for one section. At one point there was a narrow
ledge with a sheer drop to the sea but I was assured
that the guide stood at this spot and would talk me through
if I was out of my comfort zone. At many places there were
safety ropes and in the steep parts there were climbing ropes
to assist. The track was well defined, although there were no
track markers. There were slippery sections and lots of tree
roots, a good chance of rain, some exposed areas and the
really steep knife-edge spurs had ropes to assist the climbers.
Golly!
After overnight rain, Monday came and the first group of
more experienced Ramblers set off about 7am for their trip
up the mountain. They came back much later than expected
well after 6 pm, tired, muddy and exhausted. They variously
said, ‘This was the hardest walk I have ever done’, there
were ‘great views but we had a bit of rain and the track was
quite slippery’ and ‘I slipped numerous times and came down
many of the slopes on my bottom’ and ‘it was a great experience,
but my knees are stuffed’ and ‘oh, where are my
anti-inflammatory tablets’. The group was late because they
were held up by ‘this 84 year old bloke who fell and needed
assistance to descend and there was a teenage girl who
could not cope with heights’. Another off-putting aspect was
that our dear ‘Marathon Man’, our veritable benchmark for fitness,
was so knackered he skipped dinner and was not seen
until the next day!
Tuesday was fine and the forecast for Wednesday was almost
favourable. The Monday warriors were vertical again,
subdued but all cleaned up. Marathon Man had recovered
and said it was the best walk he’d ever done and he was going
to do it again on Wednesday! A friend who went with the
Monday group felt it was within my capabilities and advised
‘just take it one section at a time’.
PAGE
Another stop —and a muesli bar. Dean told us about the Island’s
flora and fauna, and counselled that the next part was
the toughest section of the ascent as we would climb steeply
towards the saddle between Mt Lidgbird and Mt Gower. The
track went through delightful rain forest dominated by Kentia
palms and Banyan trees. Thick poly ropes were installed at
the steeper sections so we were able to use our arm muscles
to boost our leg power. The track led to a rest stop at pretty
Erskine Creek where we were able to refill water bottles and,
you guessed it — more chocolate.
Dean explained that the track now climbed steeply to the
saddle and up to a natural rock formation which had blocked
the access of feral goats and pigs to the summit; consequently
the flora of the summit was in pristine condition with
many plant species that were endemic to the Island. Soon
we reached a vantage point and could see straight over the
nearby 777m Mt Lidgbird. In the distance were the coral

eefs and lagoon, the distant hills and Mt Eliza at the end of
the Island. While we laboured upwards, step after step, flocks
of Providence Petrels were soaring effortlessly upon the air
currents. But we were all enjoying ourselves, Marathon Man
especially.
More climbing and distant views of Balls Pyramid, perched
like a geological ghost in the ocean. Then we came to a spot
where Dean stood on the edge of the cliff and directed us up
a long rocky section. I sensed this was ‘the bad bit’, kept my
eyes on Dean and the way he was pointing and listened to his
instructions — I did not look down or dare think ‘this won’t be
easy coming down’. I concentrated only on the job at hand,
finding hand and footholds. The rope really helped us to pull
ourselves up this very steep exposed ridge.
Then came the scary section where I couldn’t see the bottom
of the rock face. I welded myself to the rope, searching for
hand and foot holds and slowly descended until Dean’s head
came into view and I was relieved when he said “put your foot
there to the right’. But after a while, going down backwards
on a long rope became rather fun and I found I was enjoying
the descent where there were ropes. Of course there weren’t
always ropes and the descent went on and on with me bracing
on trees and securing my hand and footholds before taking
each step. Towards the end my knees were telling me it
had been a very steep descent and I was relieved when we
reached Erskine Creek as I knew we were over the steepest
parts. Then the time came for us to don helmets again for the
Lower Road ledge.
The last part of the walk seemed endless, but we managed to
finish the walk about 5pm intact, unmuddied and undamaged
and were pleased to be greeted by our fellow Ramblers who
were out on a bird watching tour. They congratulated us on
our successful climb. We were tired but had a great sense
of accomplishment!
I found myself really looking forward to the end and sitting in
the bus. It had been a great experience and a credit to a really
skilled guide who knew when to pause the group for a little talk
and a muesli bar. And it was great testimony to the advice of
take it one section at a time.
Grace Farley
**************************
Walls of Jerusalem and
Freycinet National Park
8-18 February 2010
Once at the top, the wind-whipped shrubs actually gave us a
sense of security as we couldn’t see how sheer the drop was
to the ocean far, far below. As we approached the summit we
regrouped in a little forest glade and Dean told us more about
the Providence Petrels that burrow and breed only on Lord
Howe Island They are an immensely curious species. He gave
a loud whooping call and dozens of Petrels plummeted down
through the trees to flop at our feet to see what was going on.
I was not impressed when one dropped willy nilly and landed
on my head! Some people actually held a bird in their hands
but I was not so inclined!
Upwards and onwards through the mossy shrubs, ferns, bush
orchids, lichen and twisted roots to the summit and a rather
small grassy clearing where we ate our lunch (sitting almost
on top of one another) as we took in the superb vista of Lord
Howe Island spread out in the ocean below. This was a very
brief stop and Dean urged us to move on as if the descent
could be difficult and he wanted to get started.
Report by Bob Clifton
As reported in the February Newsletter by Lynne eight
Ramblers completed a very successful and enjoyable
walking holiday to Tasmania in February 2010. Without going
into all the detail I have posted a few photographs to paint
the picture of this beautiful area.
Day 1 was warm and sultry with a stiff 300m climb to
Trappers Hut for morning tea, and then a steady 400m climb
through Herod’s Gate to our campsite sheltered by ancient
King Billy Pines beneath the Gate of Chain. The evening
view of Mt Jerusalem was awesome.
Going down was indeed all downhill but I felt apprehensive
because we were up a heck of a long way. Fortunately Bruce
preceded me and told me where he had found foot and handholds.
The ropes were a godsend for the descent and I did
learn some abseiling skills — thanks Andrew for your advice.
PAGE

Day 2 included a circuit walk, in beautiful clear weather, to the top of Mt Jerusalem for views in all directions, lunch and a swim
in Lake Tyre, a descent to Lake Thor, and return to camp via Zion Vale
Day 3 dawned with atmosphere. We walked past Dickson Kingdom Hut, through Jaffa Vale, along the northern shore of Lake
Ball and Lake Ball Hut, and to the northern end of Lake Adelaide for lunch in intermittent rain and in the company of heaps of
leaches. We found a protected campsite near Stretcher Lake and after a short evening walk in the mist were in bed by 6.00pm
to achieve eleven hours sleep.
Day 4 we returned to our cars, drove to Deloraine for lunch, and then onto Swansea for two nights.
Day 5 involved a longish day walk past Mt Amos to the southern end of Wineglass Bay, returning via Hazards Beach and rocky
headlands of Coles Bay. On Day 6 we headed to Maria Island which has been previously reported by Lynne.
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